Top ten tips for Effective
Communication Skills

Be interested in the people you are
communicating with. Remember people are more attracted
to those who are interested in them, and will pay
more attention to what they are saying.

3

Be relaxed. Bad body language such
as hunched shoulders, fidgeting, toe-tapping or hair-twiddling
all give the game away.

4

Listen first. Communication is a
two-way process; getting your message across depends
on understanding the other person.

5

Smile and use eye contact. It’s
the most positive signal you can give. (A relatively simple yet very effective way to improve your nonverbal communication skills.)

6

Think before you speak or put pen
to paper: what message you trying to convey? What
outcome do you want to elicit?

7

Be direct (but not aggressive). A
lot of flannelling around can make people lose interest
and miss the vital point.

8

Dont use jargon – and the acronyms,
and the technical expressions, unless you are sure
your listeners understand. Our communication with external customers can often be impacted by using too much jargon.

9

Write as you would speak. Don’t
fall into the trap of using long words just because
it’s written down.

10

Take your time. Whether in speech
or on paper, rushing can make you seem nervous, unconfident
and downright scared.